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Space photos of the day: Massive Storms

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Tropical storm Irene approaches Puerto Rico (l.) in this image taken from the MODIS instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite on August 21. Categorized as a hurricane, Irene buffeted Puerto Rico with winds and torrential rain August 22, knocking out power and downing trees as it churned westward to threaten Florida by the end of the week. NASA/Goddard MODIS Rapid Response Team/Reuters

An image released by the NOAA made from the GEOS East satellite shows Hurricane Irene on Aug. 23, 2011 as it passes over Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. NOAA/AP

An image taken from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) that flies on NASA's Terra satellite, shows Tropical Storm Nock-ten moving over the Philippines on July 26, 2011. Tropical storm Nock-Ten moved out of northern areas of the Philippines' main island Luzon on Wednesday after killing 25 people, disaster and weather officials said. NASA/Reuters

Late last year, a new, remarkably bright storm erupted in Saturn's northern hemisphere. Amateur astronomers first spotted it in early December, with the ringed gas giant rising in planet Earth's predawn sky. Orbiting Saturn, the Cassini spacecraft was able to record this close-up of the complex disturbance from a distance of 1.1 million miles. Over time, the storm has evolved, spreading substantially in longitude, and now stretches far around the planet. Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA/Jean-Luc Dauvergne

The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season had been running for several months before it saw its first hurricane, Dean. Dean began as a wave-like disturbance in the cloud bands off South America, which gathered together to form a storm system on August 13. By August 18, Dean had grown in power to become a Category 4 hurricane, swirling in the Caribbean Sea. The storm caused great damage to Jamaica and Grand Cayman Island, among other Caribbean islands. NASA

Hurricane Katrina moved ashore over southeast Louisiana and southern Mississippi early on August 29, 2005, as an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm. With winds of 135 miles per hour, a powerful storm surge, and heavy rains, Katrina pounded the US Gulf Coast, triggering extensive life-threatening flooding. This image shows the storm as it moved over southern Mississippi. The eye of the storm is due east of New Orleans, Louisiana.NASA

This photograph shows the last face-on view of the Great Dark Spot that Voyager will make with the narrow angle camera. The image was shuttered 45 hours before closest approach at a distance of 1.7 million miles. The image shows feathery white clouds that overlie the boundary of the dark and light blue regions. The pinwheel (spiral) structure of both the dark boundary and the white cirrus suggest a storm system rotating counterclockwise.NASA/JPL

When 17th-century astronomers first turned their telescopes to Jupiter, they noted a conspicuous reddish spot on the giant planet. This Great Red Spot is still present in Jupiter's atmosphere, more than 300 years later. It is now known that it is a vast storm, spinning like a cyclone. Unlike a low-pressure hurricane in the Caribbean Sea, however, the Red Spot rotates in a counterclockwise direction in the southern hemisphere, showing that it is a high-pressure system. Winds inside this Jovian storm reach speeds of about 270 mph.Amy Simon (Cornell U.)/Reta Beebe (NMSU)/Heidi Hammel (Space Science Institute, MIT)/Hubble Heritage Team/NASA

Frosty white water ice clouds and swirling orange dust storms above a vivid rusty landscape reveal Mars as a dynamic planet in this sharpest view ever obtained by an Earth-based telescope. Especially striking is the large amount of seasonal dust storm activity seen in this image. One large storm system is churning high above the northern polar cap [top of image], and a smaller dust storm cloud can be seen nearby.NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

Snow lingered in Great Britain and Ireland on December 8, 2010. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image the same day.Jeff Schmaltz/MODIS Rapid Response Team/NASA GSFC/NASA

A large, bright and complex convective storm that appeared in Saturn's southern hemisphere in mid-September 2004 was the key in solving a long-standing mystery about the ringed planet. The complex feature with arms and secondary extensions just above and to the right of center is called the Dragon Storm. It lies in a region of the southern hemisphere referred to as "storm alley" by imaging scientists because of the high level of storm activity observed there by Cassini in the last year.NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute

The East Coast of the United States went from balmy, spring-like weather to winter white overnight between February 11 and 12, 2006. A powerful nor’easter moved up the coast from the Gulf of Mexico settling heavy snow from Virginia to Massachusetts.NASA